Five days of the Waldo Canyon Fire: A time-lapse video

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZBA7eHY022k&rel=0]

A spellbinding video by Steve Moraco. Best viewed full screen. Don’t miss Moraco’s notes posted with the video on YouTube. Video also available on Vimeo.

You don’t need to see the flames to appreciate the helplessness of firefighters when conditions changed on Tuesday (07:00) and 65 mph winds drove the Waldo Canyon Fire across two fire breaks and straight into the suburbs of Colorado Springs. A fire that had stayed on the far side of the ridge for several days suddenly turned and roared down the canyons. Unfortunately, it’s not uncommon along the Front Range to have 90 mph winds come blasting out of those canyons.

The main highway seen running right-to-left through the middle of town is I-25. The high granite peak in the distance (center right, two lights visible on summit at night), often obscured by smoke, is Pike’s Peak. The large installation (just right of center) with the big white building (Cadet Chapel) backed against the mountains is the U.S. Air Force Academy. The camera is looking to the southwest.